He's one of Australia's most recognisable sporting stars.
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The man that donned the iconic nicknames such as "Thorpedo" and "Thorpey" was greeted with open arms at Moss Vale War Memorial Aquatic Centre.
Bluefit Swim Squad and Moss Vale Amateur Swim Club swimmers basked in Olympic glory when inspirational swimming legend, five time Olympic gold medialist, Ian Thorpe AM splashed into the Moss Vale War Memorial Aquatic Centre on Saturday, November 14.
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Thorpie lapped it up with his littlest fans in a special Q&A session as well as meeting with Mayor of Wingecarribee Shire, Cr Duncan Gair and Centre staff.
Moss Vale War Memorial Aquatic Centre Manager, Kate Makin said it was amazing having a sporting star of that magnitude in the Highlands.
"The kids were so excited and also the parents were just as thrilled as he was racing more from their day," Ms Makin said.
"The kids asked such great questions. Some of them caught him off guard with how in depth they were.
"They asked him 'who supported him most on his team', 'what kind of food does he love' and 'what he's up to these days'."
Thorpe was in the Highlands to promote the great work Bluefit provides as he is now a member of the organisation.
"He's now a part of Bluefit's board," Ms Makin said.
"He supports the Bluefit swimming curriculum. He's travelling around all the different Bluefit sites as a part of our open day.
"In every November we have an Open Community Day, but due to COVID and being COVID safe, we couldn't do it this year.
"So this was our alternative."
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